2017-10-10 (Bemsha Swing - Thelonious Monk)

Bemsha Swing - Thelonious Monk (1954)

Monk was born 100 years ago today. New Yorker music critic Whitney Balliett once describe Monk's playing as feeling like, "missing the bottom step in the dark". His uncanny sense of  syncopation, timing and chord changes matched with an ease with familiar sounding melodies made him special.  He heard what others heard. He just heard it differently. And, he was uncompromising in his approach.

He came from the bebop era and refused to go along with the commercial turn of early 50's jazz. He had a resurgence in the mid 50's and became one of the giants of that time. He produced several great recordings through the 60's, but all but disappeared during the 70's. Health and mental health issues kept him sidelined until he died of a stroke in 1982.

"10 things you didn't know about thelonious monk, by his son t.s. monk"